Reasoned Opinions In An Unreasoned Time

Racism

Senator Orrin Hatch has some strong words during Justice Thomas’ confirmation hearings. There are many similarities between what happened to Justice Thomas and what is now happening to Judge Kavanaugh. His words are almost perfectly applicable to the sideshow that Judge Kavanaugh’s hearing confirmation he become.

I have included the scathing rebuke from Justice Thomas on how he feels he was being treated during his trial confirmation hearing.

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Conservatives, Republicans, and anyone that is not a Democrat, Leftist, or self avowed SJW are often maligned by Democrats, Leftists, or self avowed SJWs as being racist. Recently, and associated with the #WalkAway movement, I have seen posts from Blacks that are sharing the backlash they have experienced from the Left for not siding with the Left. The people that are supposed to be the tolerant ones are the ones castigating these man and women because they dare to think freely. And, contrary to what the leftist institutions would like you to believe, are being welcomed by the Right.

Posts like this are what I am talking about. I have not verified this man’s statement. His, though, is one of the many I have seen lately. I take his statement at face value, in large part, because of the firestorm that Kanye West stirred up by simply saying he does not hate the President. For a statement as completely harmless as this, the internet hate machine revved into high gear and did everything they could to trash and discredit him. The most disgusting attacks on Kanye came from those that accused him of being mentally unstable for making such a comment. A family member of mine made this comment to me when I asked for their opinion about the Kanye situation. I was both surprised and not surprised by their claim that he needed mental health care. If people are unable to have independent thought, as Kanye said, without being labeled as mentally defective we have reached a new low as a society. Also, does that mean that anyone who is not on the Left is mentally defective as well, or is it just Kanye because, you know, he is black and blacks are only supposed to be staunchly democrat?

The New York Times found themselves in hot water this past week via their newest editorial board hire, Sarah Jeong. Way back in 2014 she sent some racist tweets directed at white people; SOURCE and Jeong Tweets. So, what did the NYT do? If you guessed that they fired her, you would be wrong. Instead, they defended their choice to hire her. Which, as a business, is their prerogative. This, however, reeks of hypocrisy and exposes the double standard of the left.

To begin, there is THIS article from February regarding the hiring and very prompt firing of writer Quinn Norton by the NY Times. After hiring Norton the armchair detectives of Twitter took swift action in digging up old dirt on her. In the span of probably 16 hours she went from the newest hire of the NYT to the newest victim of the internet hate mob. She was guilty of saying hateful things and using derogatory words towards various groups. Also, she was friends with someone that became a Neo Nazi or something. It was totally within the purview of the NYT to give Norton the boot. However, fast forward to last week and the same NYT is defending their hiring of Sarah Jeong. Norton and Jeong Tweets

Next up is the statement that the NYT released after the furor over Jeong’s tweets, Here. It is such a toothless admonishment that they probably should not have released a statement at all. Joy Pullman with The Federalist wrote a damning piece, HERE, discussing that the statements from the NYT and Jeong, separately, are disconcertingly similar to the defense that the Alt-Right has used for their racism. The NYT and Jeong use the Alt-Right claim that her racism is satirical, counter trolling, and that she was “imitating the rhetoric” of those making racist remarks towards her. Pullman also explicates how anti-everything-Alt-Right the NYT is, or claims to be, while at the same time using their very defense in favor of Jeong.

There is one glaring differences between the Norton and the Jeong cases:

1. Norton is White, and Jeong is not.

You may be wondering, “So what, racism is racism, right?” You are wrong, again.

Racism, at least for the Left, has been redefined. Racism is now prejudice plus power (Source). More or less meaning that only whites can be racist and never be the victims of racism. This does not actually jive with the dictionary definition of racism; which does not necessitate elements of Marx’s social conflict theory in order for something or someone to be racist.

By firing Norton and retaining Jeong the NYT has expressly shown that they accept and are likely to promulgate this intersectional, Marxist based redefinition of racism.

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I want to preempt any post that I make about racism by stating my beliefs here:

It is evil. Full stop.

We should ostracize and condemn racists for their beliefs. Full stop.

Unprovoked violence against racists makes you, at best, no better a person than they are.

Irrefutable evidence is necessary to back up accusations of being racist; not evidence that is circumstantial, out of context, or “dog whistle” in nature.

There is no such thing as “reverse racism.” It is all just racism.

It does not require the undertones of Marx’s Conflict Theory, or “power imbalances.” Any attempt to steer away from the dictionary definition of racism is an attempt for the that person to excuse their own behavior.

Anyone, no matter their own race, is capable of being racist. It is not exclusive to white people. If you feel otherwise it is because you are attempting to excuse your own behavior

I may update this from time to time as the need arises and I welcome open discussion about this topic. Limits on what is and is not acceptable to discuss are totalitarian and un-American.

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Accusing someone of being a racist is one of the most gross claims that someone can make against another person. It is a popular tactic that is often used when someone is losing an argument, disagrees with you politically, or is attempting to gain some kind of moral superiority. Its a bad faith tactic that, more often than not, has no basis in reality.

Hindsight is 20/20 and the overwhelming majority of people in the United States concur that racism is bad, being a racist is bad, and would like to see racism no longer exist.

When I lived in Houston I would listen to Michael Berry, a local conservative talk radio show host. He seemed to be lightning rod for controversy because he spoke his mind a lot (like everyday, twice a day), he had a platform, and a large market. Berry is from deep southeast Texas, studied at U of H, UT Austin, and University of Nottingham. He and his wife of 25 years have adopted their two sons. He graduated with honors and has earned two law degrees, and uses his position to do good around Houston. I have personal experience with this; I believe this was back in 2012 or 2013. News of a local, 91 year old recent widower, WWII (Marine) veteran’s home being broken into, burglarized, and vandalized by some local teens was reported. Berry used his radio show to rally the city of Houston; he talked about what happened, spoke of Mr. Wood’s situation, and implored anyone that could help, to help. Long story short, more than 60 local business and 300 volunteers worked to not just restore and improve his home, but to also make it more accessible for the elderly veteran. I got to take part in this, and it was an amazing thing to see so many come together so fast. Story

I bring this up to show the type of person Mr. Berry is.

He is often called a racist. Did I mention that his wife is from India, and that their two sons are from Ethiopia? Taking this information about his family into consideration; what would his burden of proof have to be in order to show that he is not a racist? I imagine that this claim of being a racist precedes him, and quite unfairly so in my opinion.

Another person whose racism, among other things, precedes them is Ben Shapiro. As noted here, Shapiro’s racism is so well documented that you can watch the vitriol pour from his mouth as he bemoans the movie Black Panther. You really get a sense of how racist he is when the article quotes Shapiro as saying, “…[A]nd liberated by the Civil Rights Movement, with federal legislation, and have not been gradually restored to, what always should have been, full civil rights in the United States.” Emphasis is mine.

The article actually does not say that. It was omitted so the author may make the point that Shapiro is racist. It is also likely that the author may have expected no one to want to watch such a racist diatribe and felt that they could make such a claim against Shapiro.

Another thing about the video is the very obvious editing jump that takes place. It doesn’t take long to find the podcast episode or YouTube video and find the part that is edited out, it’s about 35 minutes into the show. The author, Isha Aran (@ishaaran), and the editor of the video clip, Alazar Moges (@zarzarbinkss) would have been unable to make such a claim against Shapiro if that edit had not been made. Below is the very first thing he says in the portion that’s edited out.

Now, you may sense that I’m mocking a little bit. The reason I’m mocking a little bit is because I hate this kind of identity politics. I think it’s incredibly stupid.

As evidence for his defense, let me present exhibits A and B.

This is the stupid identity politics that he was talking about. The people in the pictures are ridiculous, the article’s author and the clip’s editor are dishonest, and this kind of foolish behavior is what got Donald Trump elected President.

To accuse someone of racism with nothing more than edited and out of context soundbites, or in spite of the fact that someone’s entire immediate family is not white, is a bush league tactic used when someone is too poorly informed/educated to make a reasoned argument. When the accusation is made many feel that defending themselves against the claim immediately becomes the most important thing they can do. Based on the situation this may be true, but more importantly you should expect this accusation anytime you engage with leftists. Come into the discussion with a strong, preplanned defense and a biting retort for their need to make such an accusation about you. A strong play will give you the upper hand, and allow you to steer the conversation back to the facts. Staying calm and focused is key; such a disgusting accusation is likely to leave you incensed. Expect it, prepare for it, and use reason and facts to show how incorrect they and their arguments are.